Nuclear Engineers
Conduct research on nuclear engineering projects or apply principles and theory of nuclear science to problems concerned with release, control, and use of nuclear energy and nuclear waste disposal.
Most important skills
- Science
- Critical Thinking
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Writing
- Mathematics
- Monitoring
- Complex Problem Solving
Key knowledge
- Engineering and Technology
- Physics
- Mathematics
- English Language
- Public Safety and Security
- Chemistry
- Computers and Electronics
- Design
What the work involves
- Examine accidents to obtain data for use in design of preventive measures.
- Monitor nuclear facility operations to identify any design, construction, or operation practices that violate safety regulations and laws or could jeopardize safe operations.
- Keep abreast of developments and changes in the nuclear field by reading technical journals or by independent study and research.
- Perform experiments that will provide information about acceptable methods of nuclear material usage, nuclear fuel reclamation, or waste disposal.
- Design or oversee construction or operation of nuclear reactors, power plants, or nuclear fuels reprocessing and reclamation systems.
- Design or develop nuclear equipment, such as reactor cores, radiation shielding, or associated instrumentation or control mechanisms.
- Initiate corrective actions or order plant shutdowns in emergency situations.
- Recommend preventive measures to be taken in the handling of nuclear technology, based on data obtained from operations monitoring or from evaluation of test results.
Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Investigative, Realistic, Conventional.
Qualifications and licensing
- Most common education
- Bachelor's Degree (81% of respondents)
- Related experience
- Over 2 years, up to and including 4 years (42.9%)
- On-the-job training
- Over 6 months, up to and including 1 year (47.6%)
- Preparation level
- O*NET job zone 4: Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
- Licensing
- Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.
Check before planning
- Licensing for Nuclear Engineers is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.
Limits
- Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
- Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0
Work environment
How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).
Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.
| Condition | Level | Compared with other occupations | Most common answer (O*NET survey) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact with others | Very low | Lower on contact with others than 90% of occupations compared | 57% of surveyed respondents chose “Contact with others most of the time” |
| Dealing with the public | Very low | Lower on dealing with the public than 83% of occupations compared | 33% of surveyed respondents chose “Not important at all” |
| Teamwork | Low | Lower on teamwork than 77% of occupations compared | 47% of surveyed respondents chose “Very important” |
| Freedom to make decisions | Very low | Lower on freedom to make decisions than 89% of occupations compared | 38% of surveyed respondents chose “Some freedom” |
| Time pressure | Low | Lower on time pressure than 72% of occupations compared | 48% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a week or more but not every day” |
| Conflict situations | Low | Lower on conflict situations than 66% of occupations compared | 50% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a month or more but not every week” |
| Dealing with unpleasant or angry people | Very low | Lower on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 85% of occupations compared | 68% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month” |
| Consequence of error | High | Higher on consequence of error than 77% of occupations compared | 40% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely serious” |
Work-pressure profile
- Time pressure: low
- Conflict situations: low
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: very low
- Consequence of error: high
Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.
Full answer distributions
Contact with others
- No contact with others: 0%
- Occasional contact with others: 9.52%
- Contact with others about half the time: 23.81%
- Contact with others most of the time: 57.14%
- Constant contact with others: 9.52%
n = 21, Occupational Expert 08/2024
Dealing with the public
- Not important at all: 33.33%
- Fairly important: 23.81%
- Important: 19.05%
- Very important: 14.29%
- Extremely important: 9.52%
n = 21, Occupational Expert 08/2024
Teamwork
- Not important at all: 0%
- Fairly important: 10.53%
- Important: 15.79%
- Very important: 47.37%
- Extremely important: 26.32%
n = 19, Occupational Expert 08/2024
Freedom to make decisions
- No freedom: 0%
- Very little freedom: 28.57%
- Limited freedom: 14.29%
- Some freedom: 38.1%
- A lot of freedom: 19.05%
n = 21, Occupational Expert 08/2024
Time pressure
- Never: 0%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 9.52%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 33.33%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 47.62%
- Every day: 9.52%
n = 21, Occupational Expert 08/2024
Conflict situations
- Never: 0%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 45%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 50%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 5%
- Every day: 0%
n = 20, Occupational Expert 08/2024
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people
- Never: 5.26%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 68.42%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 26.32%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 0%
- Every day: 0%
n = 19, Occupational Expert 08/2024
Consequence of error
- Not serious at all: 5%
- Fairly serious: 25%
- Serious: 10%
- Very serious: 20%
- Extremely serious: 40%
n = 20, Occupational Expert 08/2024
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O*NET-SOC 17-2161.00 · SOC 17-2161 (exact, high confidence) · dataset 2026.10.8